By Evan Lange
It depends on how much control your employer has over your time. Under federal law, which applies in Texas, on-call time is paid work if you must stay at the workplace or so close by, or respond so often, that you can’t use the time for yourself. If you only need to keep your phone on and can otherwise go about your day, the waiting time generally isn’t paid, but any time spent actually working on a call is. Training is paid work unless it’s outside normal hours, truly voluntary, not directly related to your job, and you do no productive work. For non-exempt employees, all of this time counts toward overtime after 40 hours.
Refinery operators, IT staff, nurses, maintenance techs, tow drivers and property managers across Houston carry an on-call phone. Many are told on-call time is “just part of the job.” Sometimes that’s true. Sometimes it’s unpaid work, and over a year it can add up to thousands of dollars in overtime.
Federal regulations say an employee who must remain on the employer’s premises, or so close that they can’t use the time effectively for their own purposes, is working while on call. An employee who only has to leave word where they can be reached is not. Factors that make on-call time more likely to be paid:
Time spent actually responding, including phone calls, remote fixes and driving to a callout, is generally work time either way.
Under federal rules, training, lectures and meetings are not work time only if all four conditions are met:
Mandatory orientation, safety training, required certifications for your current job and online modules you’re told to complete at home are usually paid work.
For non-exempt employees, compensable on-call, callback and training time is added to the workweek. If it pushes you over 40 hours, it must be paid at time-and-a-half. Read our overtime guide, learn whether employers can refuse to pay unauthorized overtime, and see how unpaid meal breaks add up too.
Being paid a salary doesn’t automatically exempt you from overtime. Your duties and pay level decide. See the overtime exemption rule.
It depends on the restrictions. If you must stay at or near the workplace, or the restrictions and frequency of calls keep you from using the time for yourself, on-call time is work and must be paid. If you only need to be reachable, waiting time generally is not paid.
Yes. Time spent actually working during an on-call shift, such as handling calls, remote work or responding to a callout, is generally compensable work time.
Generally yes. Training is unpaid only if it is outside regular hours, voluntary, not directly related to your job, and involves no productive work.
Yes. Required orientation and job-related training are generally hours worked and must be paid.
Compensable on-call, callback and training time counts toward the 40 hours that trigger overtime for non-exempt employees.
The Lange Firm represents employees in Houston and across Texas. Attorney Evan Lange can review your on-call policy, call logs and pay records to see whether you’re owed unpaid wages or overtime, and whether you faced retaliation for asking. Learn more about wrongful termination.
If your employer controls your time,
your employer should pay for it.
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